Someplace to Belong
by Keika Hyuuga
Summary: She noticed a little girl sitting on her doorstep. She knew she couldnt just leave her there so she held out her hand. Come with me, she said. Sakura adopts a young girl named Kanna.  Main characters: SakuraxNeji and an OC
1. Chapter 1

Someplace to Belong

Chapter One, Kanna

Note that in this story Sakura is supposed to be 26.

--

It was mid-January, freezing cold outside. Sakura was walking home from a mission. She was ready to be home after a month in Suna. She and her squad had been taking scrolls over to Suna recently. She now had a squad of her own. Finally that day had come. She was a sensei to her students Kyon, Momo, and Hiroki. Sakura was currently Tsunade's messenger.

Walking back and forth from Suna was hard work. She was glad to finally be walking up her driveway. Sakura noticed a figure lying on her doorstep. As she drew closer she saw it was a little girl. She bent over her.

"Hey are you ok?" Sakura asked.

The young girl sat up. Her big white eyes starring up at Sakura.

"Where is your mommy?" Sakura tried again.

Sakura wanted to get out of the cold, but she knew she couldn't leave her out here. She held out her hand.

"Come with me," she said.

The little girl starred at her hand for the longest time then reached out to Sakura. Sakura led her into the house. Once they were inside, Sakura and the girl sat down in the living room.

"What's your name?"

The little girl looked up.

"Kanna Hyuuga and I am this many." Kanna held up five fingers.

Sakura laughed. "I'm Sakura Haruno and I'm this many." She held up ten fingers then ten more then after that six fingers coping little Kanna. "Ok how bout I give you a nice hot bath, some dinner, and a place to sleep for the night."

Kanna smiled, "Ok!"

Kanna followed her up to the bathroom. Sakura helped her out of her clothes, and filled up the tub with warm water. When the tub was full Kanna climbed in. Sakura helped her wash off.

"I'll be right back," Sakura said leaving the bathroom.

She walked into her room and opened the closet.

'If only I could remember where I put that box,' she thought.

She dug deep into the closet. After a couple seconds she pulled out a box full of clothes from when she was a little girl. She set the box on the floor next to her bed. She pulled out a pair of pajamas for Kanna. She walked back into the bathroom.

"I found you some pajamas."

She set them on the counter. Kanna stepped out of the tub, and Sakura helped her dry off. When she was done she pulled the pajamas off the counter. Kanna looked up at Sakura and smiled, her two front teeth missing. Kanna held Sakura's shoulders and stepped into the pajama bottoms. Sakura slipped the top over her head.

"Let's go get some dinner," Sakura offered.

Sakura went downstairs with Kanna following close behind. They went into the kitchen. Kanna went to the table and sat up on her knees in a chair. Sakura pulled a container of miso out of the fridge to heat up. She took the top off and set it in the microwave. She poured both of them milk to drink and set them on the table. The microwave turned off. Sakura went to get the miso. She used hot mitts to get it out.

She poured the miso into two bowls and set them on the table. She sat down across from Kanna.

"Eat up!" Sakura said starting on her soup. "So where is your mommy?"

"I don't know" Tears swelled up in her eyes. "She never came home."

Kanna wiped her eyes off. She took a sip of her miso. She looked at Sakura.

"We'll go look for them tomorrow, ok?" Sakura assured her.

She got up to clear the table. She put the bowls in the sink along with the cups and spoons. Sakura took Kanna's hand and led her back upstairs. Sakura made up the bed in the guest room. She put an extra quilt on her bed since it was so cold out.

"OK, done" she said finishing up.

She pulled the sheets down for Kanna to get in. Kanna climbed into bed.

"Goodnight," Kanna said.

Sakura smiled, "Goodnight."

As Sakura left she flipped off the lights. Sakura went to her room to get ready for bed. She brushed her teeth and washed off her face. Then she got into her bed and turned off the lamp. All she could think about were tomorrow's plans.

'What if Kanna's parents didn't come back because they were dead.' She thought. Sakura drifted off to sleep.

--

Sorry the chapter was so short; the next one will be longer. This is my second fanfiction so go easy on me. Please Review!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two, Snow

It was morning and snow was falling. A white blanket covered the ground. It had not snowed since three years ago. Sakura and Kanna were getting ready to leave. Today they were going to the Hyuuga compound. Maybe they would find Kanna's parents.

"Are you ready to go?" Sakura asked.

Kanna nodded her head in response. Sakura, followed closely by Kanna, headed out into the snow. It wasn't long before they arrived. Hinata, one of Sakura's childhood friends, was out in front of the Hyuuga mansion.

"Hey Hinata, can I talk with you a second?" She called approaching the mansion. They stopped in front of Hinata.

The Hyuuga compound was one of the most beautiful places in Konoha. The yards were always covered in flowers and willow trees. Even today with the snow, the mansion was a beautiful place. Snow covered the trees and fell on the roof tops of all the Hyuuga homes.

"I guess I could spare some time, what is it," Hinata asked.

Sakura explained the situation she had come across the previous night.

"I know where they live," Hinata offered. "Go straight down the first row of houses and it's the fifth house on the right."

"Thank you."

Sakura and Kanna took the directions and came across a beautifully decorated home. The lights were all off inside, but Sakura still hoped someone was home that could help them. Kanna ran up to the door and rang the bell. They waited a couple seconds but nobody answered. Sakura tried again, but had no luck.

'I really thought this would work.' Sakura thought. 'I guess it's time to ask the Hokage for help.'

Sakura took Kanna's hand and led her back to the entrance. Hinata was still out on her porch. She sat in a swing reading a book. Sakura approached her for the second time.

"Know one was home, I need to talk to Tsunade-Sama about this. I can't take her though." Sakura explained calmly.

"I'll watch her for you." Hinata offered looking up from her book.

"Thanks. Kanna I'll be back in an hour or two then we'll all go out to lunch." Sakura said releasing her hand.

Kanna looked up at Hinata then to Sakura. She ran to Sakura and held her leg. Sakura took her hand and pulled her towered Hinata.

"This is Hinata, stay with her until I come back. OK?"

Hinata held out her hand for Kanna to take. Kanna smiled taking her hand.

"Ok," she said.

-----

Sakura leaped through the village until she reached the Hokage tower. She climbed the staircase leading to Tsunade's office. She knocked twice on the door. There was no answer. Sakura cracked the door open and stuck her head in. Tsunade's head was laying on a stack of papers on her desk. Sakura stood over her shaking her arm.

"Hey Tsunade-Sama, wake up!"

Her head lifted off the desk.

"Huh… I'm awake." She said.

"Right! I have something to tell you." Sakura said rolling her eyes.

"What would that be?" Tsunade asked.

Sakura explained how she found Kanna, and her visit to the Hyuuga compound. She told her everything.

"Two weeks ago I sent three shinobi after some missing ninja. Two of those ninja were Kanna's parents. The other was a friend of theirs. Three days ago their friend came back… without Daisuke and Kyoko-san, her parents. They had died fighting some ninja that attacked them." Tsunade explained. "Her parents didn't even have any siblings, so Kanna has nowhere to go."

"What about her grandparents?" Sakura asked.

Tsunade looked down at a stack of papers. She started to sort through them.

"They died… twenty-six years ago when the nine-tailed fox attacked our village." She said. "I want her to stay with someone of the Hyuuga clan."

There was a long pause.

"I want you to ask around the Hyuuga compound, if you can't find anyone… well, we'll go from there." Tsunade continued.

Sakura thanked her and left.

-----

Sakura walked up to the Hyuuga mansion, and knocked on the door. Hiashi opened the door.

"Many I help you?" he asked.

"I'm here to see Hinata." Sakura said.

"Here let me get her for you." He said calmly.

"No need," a voice called from inside.

Hinata appeared from behind Hiashi. Hiashi left.

"Sakura!" Kanna ran up to her and held her arms up. Sakura bent down and picked her up.

"Hey, lets go get some lunch, you can come too Hinata." Sakura offered.

"Sounds fun, let me get my coat." Hinata said running back inside. Hinata came back wearing a beautiful blue and pink coat. "Ready," she called. They walked through the village until they came to Ichiraku Ramen. Sakura sat Kanna down on a stool, then she and Hinata sat down.

They each ordered a bowl of ramen. It was ready within five minutes. They consumed their food quickly. When they were finished Sakura paid the bill.

"Well I guess we'll see ya later." Sakura said getting up. She helped Kanna off the stool.

"Byee Hinata," Kanna called out. Hinata waved to Kanna as she left. Sakura walked hand in hand back home with Kanna. They had eaten a late lunch which by now could be considered dinner. It was around 6:00 pm when they got home. Sakura decided to clean the breakfast dishes since they were not done this morning. Tomorrow she would have to meet her students at the training grounds.

Time went by pretty quickly after she was done cleaning. By now it was already time for bed. Sakura took Kanna upstairs.

"Alright, see ya in the morning," Sakura said. She kissed Kanna on the head. Kanna turned around and hugged Sakura.

"Goodnight," Kanna said. She ran into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Sakura walked into her own bathroom. Things weren't as lonely with Kanna around. She enjoyed it actually. She desperately wished it could stay this way forever. Sakura climbed into bed.

"I love you Kanna," she whispered as she fell asleep.

-----

Wow that took a while to type. I hope you enjoyed it. I'm going to do my best to have a chapter put up each week. Please Review!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three, Neji

"I want you all to run five laps around the training grounds." Sakura ordered.

"Aww, come on, can't we skip laps today?" Momo complained. Sakura and her squad were training today. They had just got back from a mission. It was no longer snowing either. Most of the snow had melted by now.

"can't you give us a break?" Hiroki moaned.

"You'll run double if you don't get started,' Sakura warned.

The three got started before Sakura could finish. "I am not running double," Hiroki said to Momo.

"Me either."

"Stubborn students huh." A voice called from behind her. Sakura and Kanna turned around

"NEJI!" she jumped up. Neji and Sakura had been dating for a year now. Sakura was always excited to see him.

"Is that Kanna? What's she doing with you?" Neji asked. Sakura explained how she ended up with Kanna. She told him how she found her and their visit to the Hyuuga compound.

"So how do you know Kanna anyways?" Sakura asked. They sat down on the bench. Sakura leaned against Neji's shoulder.

"Family friend." He paused. "You wanna go get a bit to eat, my treat?"

"Sounds good." She stood up. The three had finished running and were over in the fields talking. "Lunch break, see you in an hour." She called.

"Already?" Momo asked.

"You should be happy." Sakura said.

They left and Kanna, Sakura, and Neji headed for Ichiraku Ramen. It was about the only place to eat around Konoha, unless you were going somewhere nice. When they got there they all sat down and ordered. "We'll share one," Sakura said to Kanna.

Kanna smiled. "Ok!"

While they waited, they had some time to catch up with each other. It wasn't long before their food was brought out. They sat, still talking as they enjoyed their food.

"I haven't seen you since you left for Suna two weeks ago." Neji said. They finished their food. Neji paid the bill.

"Can you come over to my house later tonight?" Sakura asked. "I need to talk to you about something.

"Sure what time?"

"Around nine pm should be late enough." She said. "See you then." He left. Sakura and Kanna made their way back to the training grounds. Her squad was waiting for her when she got there.

"Took you long enough," Kyon muttered. Sakura glared at him. 

"You can all work on whatever you like for the next two hours, and then we'll call it a day."

They got to work right away; Hiroki and Kyon sparring and Momo throwing shuriken. Since Sakura had two hours of nothing to do. She let out a heavy sigh. 'Well I do need to tell Kanna about her parents, might as well get it over with,' she thought.

"Umm… Kanna… I've been meaning to tell you, but…" She didn't know how to tell her this. "Your parents… they died on a mission." She spoke calmly. She felt so horrible having to tell an innocent five year old that her parents were annihilated. Kanna looked up at her with her big orbs.

Tears began to form in her eyes. "I'm really sorry." She said. She hugged Kanna, rubbing her back as she held her. "I love you so much," Sakura comforted her. Kanna held onto her with all she had. She tried to get a hold of herself. The tears just kept coming.

It was later that night and Sakura was taking Kanna up for bed. She pulled the covers over Kanna's chest. She kissed her forehead.

"I love you nee-san." Kanna said.

"I love you to," Sakura said closing the door to her room.

It was eight-forty-five. She walked into the kitchen. 'I guess I will make some tea for Neji and I.' she thought. Right when she was finishing up there was a soft knock on the front door. 'That has to be Neji,' she thought.

She walked out into the den, tea tray in hand. She set it down on the coffee table. She went over to the front door, and opened it. A tall black-haired ANBU was standing on the door step. She stepped aside to let him in.

"So there was something you wanted to talk about?" He said sitting down on the sofa across from Sakura.

She poured tea for the both of them.

"I talked with Hokage-Sama the other day." She started. "She said she needs to live with someone of the Hyuuga clan and I thought-"

"I know what you are thinking, and… I can't?" He looked down.

"But if you don't she'll end up in an orphanage."

"Sakura, I can't adopt her, being an ANBU is a busy job. I'm almost never home and I can't take her on missions with me." He said still looking down.

"You are the only one that can though. Hinata has her own family to take care of already. You are the only other Hyuuga I can trust." She was on the verge of tears.

"I'm sorry Sakura I love her just as much as you do, and you know I would if I could." He looked up.

"What am I to do with her? Tsunade-Sama won't let her live with me. She needs a home or they will put her in the Konoha Orphanage. I can't let her live her life without parents.

"Why can't she live with Hinata's family. I'm sure Naruto would love to have a daughter. Hiro would have a sister and they would be happy with her." He asked.

"You know it would be rude to ask her, she has enough to worry about right now with Hiro entering the academy and all."

Sakura got up and moved over to the couch next to Neji. She lied back against his chest. He crossed his arms around her. Know one said anything. Finally Sakura spoke up.

"It's pretty late, time has slipped away being ten-thirty. You wanna sleep over?" She asked.

"Sure" he said.

"You can sleep on my bed. I guess I'll sleep on the couch." She offered.

"Or we can both sleep in your bed."

Sakura blushed, "Ok" she said.

They both got up. Neji followed her up the stairs. She stopped in front of Kanna's room. Cracking the door open ever so slightly, she peeked her head in. Kanna was in the bed asleep. She took her head out and very quietly closed the door. "She's asleep" she whispered.

They quietly walked into Sakura's room.

"I'll be right back." She said.

Sakura took a silky pajama dress out of her drawers. She closed the door behind her as she entered the bathroom.

Neji pulled the covers down on the bed and got in. He carefully took his headband off and placed it down on the bedside table. Sakura came out of the bathroom and put her dirty cloths in the hamper. She got in the bed with Neji."Thanks for letting me stay the night." He said.

"Anytime… really." She said.

She turned off the lamp and laid back. Neji scooted closer to her and placed his arm around her. She held his hand.

"I love you." He whispered. There was no answer. Sakura had already fallen asleep. With that he too closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

A/N: Hey guys! It took me a long time to write this than expected with Halloween and all. I hope you enjoy it. Could-Careless: I was going to make it a SakuraxNeji anyways so I hope you like it.

Please Review!


	4. Chapter 4

Someplace to Belong

Chapter Four

The Mission

Over the next four months, Neji and Sakura had grown closer. They met up everyday just to talk about missions and whatnot. Neji slept over at Sakura's house about three times a week. He practically lived there.

At the moment Sakura was out shopping with Kanna. She had promised to take her out to buy some new clothes.

"Look at this!" Sakura said holding up a shirt. It was a dark purple and had the Konoha leaf symbol printed on the back.

"I like it. Purple is my favorite color," Kanna exclaimed.

"Well then we'll just have to buy this one too," Sakura said placing it in her arms.

Sakura spoiled Kanna like she was her daughter. She bought her almost anything she wanted and treated her like a princess. Sakura's problem though was letting her get away with everything. Like last week for example…

---------- Flashback ----------

"I thought I told you, you weren't allowed to touch the kunai!" Sakura yelled angrily.

Sakura had working on cleaning the bathroom upstairs, while Kanna played in the living room. Sakura had clearly told Kanna not to touch her kunai, but Kanna didn't listen. While she had the chance she threw a kunai across the room and smashed a picture hanging on the wall. The glass was all cracked and the actual picture had a large rip in it where the kunai had pierced it.

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to see if I could actually throw it." She sobbed.

"They are very dangerous. You could have gotten hurt." Sakura's tone started to return to normal.

She picked up the picture frame studying it carefully. She pulled the kunai out of the photo.

"Just don't do it again, ok?" She said.

---------- End of Flashback ----------

"Can I ask you something?" Kanna asked.

Sakura turned to face Kanna.

"Yes, ask away!"

"Are you going to marry Neji?" She asked.

Sakura's face flushed red. She didn't know what to say. Suddenly she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around meeting face-to-face with Neji.

'Speak of the Devil.' She thought.

"Oh, Hi, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"Actually, I'm here to tell you Tsunade-Sama has a mission for us, and needs to talk to you immediately." He said.

"Oh… Let me just purchase these and then we can go." She said struggling with the load in her arms a bit.

"Ok… Here, let me help." Neji took some of the clothes from her arms.

They walked over to the check-out line. There was no one else in line so they put all the clothes down on the check-out counter. After they got they're bags they started heading towered the door.

"Can I help?" Kanna asked looking up at them, her big white orbs starring into Neji's eyes.

"It's ok, we've got it," he said.

"But I want to help," she explained holding out her hands.

Neji handed her the smallest bag. It was almost bigger than she was.

"You sure you want to carry that?" he asked.

"I'm six now, I can handle it," she said in a proud voice.

"I missed it, when did you turn six?" Neji asked in a (fake) surprised voice.

"Yesterday, May 15th!" She exclaimed.

"Oh, wait, I think I have something for you." He said digging through his pocket. "Ah, yep, here it is."

He pulled out a small box.

"Happy Birthday!"

He handed her the box. She looked at the box in her hands.

"Open it already!" Neji chuckled.

She took the lid off the box revealing a beautiful locket.

"You can put whatever you want in it." Neji said.

"What do you say, Kanna?" Sakura reminded her.

"Thank you it's really pretty!" Kanna said. 

"Mm Hmm. Your welcome." He smiled. "Do you want to wear it?"

Kanna nodded her head and held the box out to Neji. He took it and removed the locket. He motioned for her to turn around. He slipped the necklace around her neck. Kanna picked it up in her hands.

"Well we better get going." Sakura said realizing how long they had been standing here.

Sakura spotted her squad sitting outside the Hokage tower. They walked over to her.

"What are you three doing here?" Sakura asked. "Are you guys going on the mission too?"

"Yeah, Tsunade didn't tell us Neji was going to go too." Hiroki said.

"Well we better get going, Tsunade-Sama said it was urgent." Sakura reminded.

"Yeah, I wonder what our mission is." Momo pondered aloud as they walked up the stairs to the Hokage Tower.

Momo knocked on the door.

"Come in!" a voice yelled from inside.

Sakura, followed by her squad and Neji, who was carrying Kanna, walked in the office. Tsunade looked up from the papers she was working on. Shizune was standing behind her.

"Ah, I've been needing to talk to you five. I have a mission for you guys." She said.

"So what's the mission?" Kyon asked

"I need you all to take this over to Suna." She handed Kyon a scroll. "I expect you back in two weeks. You will leave in an hour. Dismissed."

Neji handed Kanna to Sakura. He left along with the three Genin. Sakura was last to leave, but before she could, Tsunade stopped her.

"Shizune will watch Kanna for you until you return." She said.

"Thank you," Sakura said handing Kanna to Shizune. Sakura tried to pull away, but Kanna held onto her shirt.

"Kanna, I have to go."

"No. I want you to stay with me!"

A tear rolled down her cheek. Sakura wiped it away with her hand. Kanna let go of her shirt and pushed away from Shizune. She ran over to Sakura who was trying to leave, and held onto her leg.

"Ok, now you're just being silly." Sakura said opening the door. "Kanna, I need to leave Now!" She said sternly.

Kanna didn't let go. She just held on and shook her head.

"Shizune can you hold her so I can leave please."

Shizune pulled Kanna away from Sakura. "Come on, Sakura has to go."

Sakura left while she had the chance. Kanna started to cry again. Shizune held her so she wouldn't chase after her. Kanna tried to break free but couldn't.

Sakura felt awful for leaving her like that, but what could she do? Kanna couldn't exactly come either. Shizune would take good care of her. Right now she had to pack, so she couldn't be worrying about Kanna right now. She walked into her room. She threw some clothes onto her bed.

'I should bring an extra pair just in case,' she thought. 'I should also bring my med-packs just in case. I just hope I won't have to use them.'

She grabbed them of the shelf in her bathroom. She put her clothes along with her med-packs in a backpack. She would be meeting Neji and her squad down by the village gates in thirty minutes. She went down to the kitchen to get a snack. She threw some bread in the toaster. Walking over to the sink she filled up a canteen with water for the road. She had everything packed now including extra kunai. Her toast popped up. Everything was ready to go.

She arrived at the village gates on time. Neji and her Genin squad were already waiting for her. The sun was starting to set overhead, and the sky was beginning to darken. The sky was a beautiful pink and orange.

"Ready to go?" Neji asked holding out his hand.

She took his hand in her own and smiled.

"Yeah, let's go!" She replied.

The five of them walked out of the village gates. This would be the start of a long journey to Suna.

"I hope we don't run into any rouge ninja on the way," Momo said.

"I'll kick their asses if we do" Hiroki proudly stated.

"Like you could take out a bunch of strong ninja by yourself." Kyon said.

"I could too! I'm stronger than any other Ninja who dares to get in my way." Hiroki fought back.

"Whatever." Kyon gave up. There was no point in trying to fight with Hiroki.

It would take three days of walking to get to Suna. That was, unless they ran into any trouble on the way. But for now, at least the night was a peaceful one.

"Suna, here we come!"

A/N: Another chapter complete! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. The next one will come out in a couple of days. I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I have been lazy and busy. Don't forget to review. It encourages me to write more. Without reviews I feel like nobody is reading my story. Bye For Now, Keika Hyuuga


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